Behind These Hazel Eyes
by IamSuperNerd
Summary: Jade's new in town. She's also doesn't have any powers at all. One of the first people she meets is the Captain America Crew. But why is she hiding things? Why isn't she explaining herself? What happens when they find out she isn't who she says she is? Warren/OC.
1. You're in the Middle of The Ride

[Author's Note: Greetings. This is one of my first Sky High stories. Hopefully it's not too hard to follow. If anything doesn't make sense, please feel free to point it out and I'll do my best to fix it. This is rated M for later chapters. They get a bit gory. But that's much later. I'm also sorry if the first... four chapters seem different then the chapters afterwards. I've been writing on this off and on for... three or four years now. Just as a note.

Also, I don't own anything related to Sky High. Just my characters and plot line. Enjoy.]

**Chapter One.**

I picked a can out of my box and put it on the shelf with ten other brands of soup and I sighed. This had to be one of the most boring jobs I've ever had. A man walked by me and seemed to look me over.

I only caught a glimpse of his red highlighted hair before I picked up another couple of cans and put them on the shelf. I stood up straight, stretching. My blue/brown hair fell a few inches short of my shoulder.

I yawned and looked at the closest clock. Fifteen minutes then I can go home.

"Tired of work already?" My new boss asked.

"No, sir." I said, picking up a hand full of cans.

Obviously, my handful seemed to be one too many. One fell out of my arms and rolled down the aisle, hitting the man that just looked at me, in the foot.

He looked down at the can and picked it up. He looked at me and walked over. "I think you dropped this." He said in a gravelly voice, putting it on the shelf for me with his fingerless-gloved hand.

"Thanks." I mumbled with a shy smile as I continued to put cans on the shelf. My boss glared at me. "What'd I do now?" I asked with a sigh.

"No flirting with customers." He snapped, walking away.

I glared after him, grumbling to myself. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the guy was still there. I saw that my box was empty, so I put it on the dolly, and rolled it away. I wanted to get his name, but I didn't want to get fired on my second day at work.

Walking into the back with the dolly, I broke down the box. I then got another box to work on. This time I ended up in the frozen food section. I happened to be unloading a box of TV dinners.

I heard a door open near me and ignored it. I continued unloading the box until I saw a gloved hand reach in front of me.

"Excuse me." He said in his deep voice. I looked up and he was barely, like barely, smiling at me as he took about five of the dinners out of my hands. "Thanks."

"Anytime." Was all I could muster up.

"Name's Peace." He said, holding out his hand.

I looked around for my boss and when I saw he wasn't around; I took his hand and stood up, shaking it. "Nice to meet you, Peace. I'm Love." I smiled.

"No, my name's seriously Peace." He smiled at me.

"Oh. I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that. My name is seriously Young." I smiled back at him.

"First name or last name?" He asked, tucking a strand of loose black hair behind his ear.

"Last. Yours?" I asked.

"Last." He said.

I saw my boss come around the corner. "Oh. Ice cream? It's at the very beginning of the aisle. Try the new flavors of Dryer's. They are pretty good." I said, pointing down the opposite way.

"Thanks." He said with a nod to me and he continued back to the aisle. My boss shook his head at me. "What? He couldn't find the ice cream." I said.

* * *

**Fifteen minutes later…**

I bought three TV dinners, a box of chocolate cookies, and a four pack of Monster. I checked out and walked out of the store I worked at. I just moved to this city, Maxville. I had just started working at the Maxville Shopping Center. I wasn't really good at anything else and I needed the job. You see, I'm only 17, but I'm emancipated. And I dropped out of school, so I needed the work.

I rode the bus all the way here from Colorado. I needed a new start, and this was the best way I could think of. I walked down the street in the pouring rain. I pulled my hood farther over my head and was thankful my backpack was water proof.

I thought I saw a shadow out of the corner of my eye. I turned around but nothing was there. There was an alley to my left so I took it. The tall building shielded me from the rain, but not the loud noises it made on the metal roof. I pulled my hood off my head and shook it off.

All the sudden, I was flung against the wall to my right. There was a guy in a hoodie holding a knife to my throat. My breath got caught in my throat as he smiled at me.

"Take the backpack off." He said. I quickly removed it and tossed it to the side. When I did this, he started attacking me, trying to grab at my clothes. It stopped as fast as it started. He suddenly got off me and landed all the way on the opposite end of the alley, about ten feet from me. Then I saw another man, holding my attacker at last two feet off the ground.

My breath seemed to come out in a rush. "If I ever see you again, I'll put you in prison. Got it?" Said my savior.

My attacker nodded his head violently. The younger man set the attacker down and he took off running away from me.

I pieced my shirt back together and zipped up my jacket. The man who saved me looked at me from the shadows of the closest building and dug something out of his pocket and put on his face, then walked over to me. "You ok miss? Did he hurt you?"

I just stared at him for a long moment before I realized he was actually talking to me. "Physically, I think I'm bruised. Mentally, I'm scared." I said, looking up at him. I mean, he was like five inches taller than me.

"Well, physically, bruises heal. Mentally, time heals all things." He said, helping me to my feet.

As the light hit him, I noticed he had a mask over his face. "Are you a… superhero?" I asked, picking up my backpack. I had heard stories from people around town. But I thought they were just gossip. I didn't know this town actually had Supers.

"Um… Yes." He said.

"That's so cool." I whispered, looking him over. He wasn't overly bulky, but you could see he had some muscles. "So, what's you power?"

"Super Strength and Flying." He told me. I nodded. Not sure if I felt comfortable with a Super saving me. "You're not from around here, are you?" He asked.

I shook my head. "Just moved here." I told him.

He nodded. "Well, after that little mishap, you probably don't want to walk home by yourself." He stated. "Can I fly you home?"

"_Fly _me home?" I asked, concerned that he was joking with me. He nodded and his feet lifted off the ground. "Can you carry me?" I asked.

"Super Strength, remember?" He laughed. It was a comforting sound. He held his hand out. I took it hesitantly. "Forgive my strong grip. I don't want to drop you." He said.

"Me neither." I said, nervously.

"I was joking." He told me with a smile as he took off.

I don't know how hard I was holding his hand, but he didn't say anything. I closed my eyes tightly. I always had a thing about heights. When I opened my eyes, I gasped. The city was so beautiful.

"Where do you live?" He asked.

So, I pointed out my apartment building. As a bird flies, it only took us five minutes. Of course, he flew faster then I could've walked. He found a tree with a few bushes around it to land behind. "Can't make a too obvious entrance." He explained when I asked.

I nodded. "Thank you." I told him. "For saving me and for flying me home." Well, that wasn't the weirdest thing I'd ever said…

He smiled. "It's my pleasure. It's a bad way to meet, but I am glad I met you." He said. I smiled. "Where do you go to school?" He asked.

"Oh. Well. I uh… don't." I said. He gave me a confused look. "I dropped out of school when I became emancipated because I had to pay my own bills." I said. "So I work at the Shopping Center, but no school for Jade."

He smiled.

I realized I hadn't told him my name. "I'm sorry. I feel rude now. Jade Young." I said, holding out my hand to him.

He smiled, shaking my hands. "Well, I'm still working out my name since I'm not a full time hero yet." He said. "But I'm thinking about Flying Strong or something like that."

I nodded. "Well, 'Flying Strong,' thanks again." I said, kissing him gently on the cheek.

He turned tomato red as I walked into the building. I sighed, leaning against the wall. I took a breath and continued up the stairs to the third floor. As soon as I got inside my apartment, I collapsed against the door.

* * *

It had been a week since I was saved by the hero-in-training. And I have to admit, if there weren't any heroes, this town would be a ghost town for all that I saw. I sighed, hanging my coat in the break room. I put my lunch in the fridge and put on my sale's apron. Today was going to be a long day. I just knew it.

Like any other day, I went into the back room and got a box that needed to be stacked. I rolled it down the main aisle way, and down the correct aisle. "Oh fun." I said.

Today was baby clothes. Go me.

After a very long thirty minutes, I returned to the back room to get another box. I looked over what we had gotten. There was only cheese and beer left and since I was a minor, I went with the cheese. Out rolled the box and down the dairy aisle.

"Excuse me miss. Do you know where the green chili is? Like for Mexican food?" A woman asked me.

"Oh, yeah. It's down aisle 8 with the refried beans." I said, pointing in the general direction.

She thanked me and continued on with her shopping.

I was really starting to get bored when I heard someone yelling. Actually, it sounded like a group of someone's. "Stupid teenagers." I said in annoyance, going to see what the disturbance in the produce was. I stopped short coming around the corner as I saw about eight men in masks. All with guns.

I began to slowly back away when I felt something against the nape of my neck. I closed my eyes as a voice spoke.

"Going somewhere?"

"Well. I heard this guy made a mess on the soup aisle and I was going to get a trash can." I said. Something hard hit the back of my head and I fell on my hands and knees.

"Shut up, smart ass. Get in the group." He said, kicking me in the side.

I groaned, dragging myself over to where the other people were being held hostage.

"Caught this one trying to escape." The man said to another man, whom I presumed to be the leader of their little group.

"Actually, I _was_ planning on getting something to hit you in the head with." I explained, keeping my hands up.

He snarled at me and sent a kick to my side. I closed my eyes, gritting my teeth. I felt one of my ribs bend and I didn't think that was good.

"It's alright." Said an unknown voice, who gently helped me stand up.

I was in too much pain to get out a thank you.

Fifteen more minutes of torturing went by before anything happened. First, there was a blast and broken glass everywhere. Then there were lots and lots of green. It took me a minute to see that it was plants.

Lots of plants.

Needless to say, a mound of confusion washed over me as I saw that our attackers were being pummeled by long vines. Then I saw her. A Super. She was gorgeous. Long red hair pulled back into a ponytail. She wore normal clothes, but they were immensely green, just like her mask.

"I suggest you put those down." She called to the two men that still had guns.

Their only reply was three shots fired, none of which reached her.

"Well, I did warn you." She said, as she moved her hands and the vines took the guns, wrapping them up.

"We surrender!" The group leader yelled, getting on his knees and putting his hands behind his head.

"Smart guy." She commented as they were 'hand cuffed' with said plants.

"Thank you!" Said most of the people being held hostage.

"Anything for the good people of Maxville." Said the masked maiden. She walked over to me after the police had taken care of the masked men. "Think I could talk to you for a sec?"

"Um, sure, yeah." I said, holding my side from the kick I received in the ribs.

"Are you Jade Young?" She asked me.

I felt like this was a trick question. "Yeah?"

"The guy that saved you the other night is my boyfriend, so I'd appreciate it if you didn't go around kissing him. Cheek, or otherwise." She smiled at me.

"Oh my gosh, I am so sorry. I was just trying to be polite. I didn't mean anything by it." I said, partially scared she'd wrap me in plants and hang me from the rafters.

"It's all good. I just wanted to clear that up. I don't really like fighting, so I try really hard to prevent it." Another honest smile.

I nodded. "I would feel the same way if I were you. Sorry, I didn't actually introduce myself. I'm Jade Young." I said, holding out my hand.

"I'm still working on a superhero name." She said, shaking my hand and leaning closer to me. "But you can call me Layla."

I smiled at her. "Thanks for saving us, by the way."

"Oh, anytime." She laughed. "Hey, I'm going for pizza later with a couple friends. You wanna come?"

I thought about it for a moment. "You're not asking me on a date, are you?" I whispered.

Another hearty laugh. "No, silly. Just pizza. You sound cool. I want you to meet some of my friends." She smiled. I laughed, relieved. Then stop instantly. Hurt ribs and laughing are a no-no. "Ok. Sure. What's the address?"


	2. Maybe I'm a Different Breed

[Author's Note: Hope you guys are enjoying the story. This chapter doesn't bounce around too much. I would just like to say, thanks for reading this. It means a lot to me. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to send a review.]

**Chapter Two**

After the incident at the store, the Manager closed the Shopping Center for the rest of the day. So I had all afternoon to get ready for hanging with Layla's friends. I wanted to be a little more than casual, but I didn't want to be really dressy. I never really thought about my outfit this much, but I wanted to make an impression, since I didn't have any friends here.

I sighed, finally settling on a pair of worn in blue jeans and an AC/DC band t-shirt. I didn't have much else to pick from. I grabbed my wallet and was disheartened only seeing ten dollars remaining. This would have to hold me over for another week, until my next paycheck.

My stomach growled at me for being so wasteful of my money. It was alright. The average person could live a week without food. I could easily last two or three days. I took seven dollars out and stashed it in the top drawer of my dresser.

This small gesture would prevent me from using it. At least until I needed it.

I had forgotten to ask the specific time, but I figured about six-ish would work. So I put my wallet in my back pocket. I also grabbed my bus pass, and apartment key. I chose not to take the bus tonight, considering it was only a few blocks away. Tonight I chose to ride my skateboard.

I picked the board up and locked my door behind me. I walked the two sets of stairs and pushed open the door leading to the outside world. The cool air hit my in the face and I shivered. I threw down my board and kicked off, sailing down the sidewalk for a good hundred feet or so before I had to push again.

This maneuver got me to Frank's Pizza Joint in about 10 minutes. Apparently, I was early. For Layla was sitting at a table by herself. "Hey!" She called as I entered.

I nodded to her, walking over and leaning my board against the booth.

"Did you have any problems finding the place?" She asked.

"Not at all." I smiled at her. Without the mask, she was really gorgeous. Long red hair in pigtails. Somewhat hippy-ish clothes. I immediately knew we'd be decent friends.

"Can I buy you something to drink while we wait?" She asked me.

I shook my head. "Nah, I'm good. Thanks." She nodded. "So how many friends are we talkin' bout?" I asked her, somewhat nervously.

"Well, there's Will, Ethan, Zach, Magenta, and I don't know if Warren is coming. So four, maybe five." She smiled, counting them off on her fingers.

"Ah. That's why the big booth." I laughed.

She smiled, nodding. The bell rang, signaling someone had entered the eatery. "Hey guys!" Layla exclaimed.

Hmm…We'd be good friends if she could tone down the always happy thing.

I turned to look at the people she was talking about. A boy, maybe a freshmen or a sophomore, completely dressed in yellow with platinum blonde hair, and a girl about the same age dressed completely in black and purple. Her hair was black, accented by strips of purple to match her outfit. I stifled a chuckle at their color choices.

"Guys, this is Jade. Jade, this is Zach and Magenta." She introduced.

"Hey." I said, shaking their hands.

Magenta leaned over and whispered something to Layla, who smiled and said "No, but I trust her."

I was highly curious as to what they were talking about. The bell rang again and Layla seemed to brighten completely. The boyfriend, I guessed. "Hey Will. Ethan." Layla smiled at them as they sat down and I scooted over until I was sitting next to Will, who was sitting next to Layla.

Ethan was the literal definition of geek. He was a short African-American boy, with thick black rimmed glasses and his entire wardrobe was orange and black. What was up with the color schemes?

"Will, Ethan, this is Jade. Jade, this is my boyfriend and Ethan." Layla said, smiling at Will.

"Nice to meet you, Ethan. Nice to see you again, Will." I smiled shaking their hands.

"Yeah." Will smiled.

"Again?" Zach spoke up.

"Uh…" I mumbled. I probably shouldn't have said that. What if his friends don't know he's a superhero? I totally just blew his cover.

"I saved her from this creep the other night." Will said, as if he were ordering food.

"Yeah." I nodded, nervously rubbing the back of my neck.

"Sweet." Zach said, high fiving Will. So, they obviously knew.

"Is Warren coming?" Layla asked Will.

"I don't know. He hasn't texted me back." Will said, checking his phone.

"Excuse me." I said, scooting out of the booth, heading for the restroom. As I turned around, I ran into a boy about six feet tall. His leather, finger-less gloves and leather jacket gave him away.

I just stood there looking at him. But he never released my gaze.

"You know each other?" Zach asked, them I heard something like 'Ow!'

"They were having a moment and you totally ruined it." Magenta scolded.

"Um." I said, awkwardly taking a small step back out of his bubble. "Hey."

He gave me a small smile. "Warren." He held out his hand.

"Jade." I said, shaking his hand. He let go of my hand. "Like the book." I laughed as it came to me.

"Book?" Ethan spoke up.

"Um, yeah. War and Peace." I said, enunciating the words.

He nodded. "My mom loved Russian literature."

I then noticed the whole table looked at us intently. "Uh, I'll be right back." I said, throwing a thumb over my shoulder. He nodded and I walked away, letting out a breath.

Once I relieved myself, I looked in the mirror over the sink. Could I get through all of this evening without totally swooning over a boy I didn't even know?

I pulled one corner of my mouth higher then the other, making a sideways line with my mouth. Guys had never really looked at me like that. I mean, I was pretty. But I was nothing compared to the girls at my old high school.

One of the blue streaks in my bangs suddenly fell into my eyes and I pushed it barely out of my vision. I seemed to look better when there was some sort of hair in my face.

I took a deep breath and went back out into the dining area. I frowned as I came near the booth. "Where's my board?" I asked the table, gesturing to where my skateboard had been five minutes ago.

"I moved it by the coats so nobody would take it." Layla smiled at me. I gave a smile back, sitting down at the end of the cushion with Warren next to me.

"So what kinda pizza do you guys want tonight?" Will asked, picking up a menu.

I couldn't even bring myself to look at the menu. I hadn't eaten since breakfast, leaving my lunch at the store. I forced myself not to show any revealing emotions, like, panic.

"Jade, how's a large pepperoni and sausage and medium veggie?" Layla asked. I enjoyed the fact she was trying to include me in their group decision.

"Sure." I said, shrugging my shoulders. _Even though I won't be eating any of it. _However, I wasn't going to let them know that. Layla seemed like the kinda girl who would freak out if I didn't eat for a day.

"So Layla. What did you get for the, uh, Science test?" Will asked, obviously improvising words. I had already figured out that they went to some kind super hero school. I mean, c'mon. They can't exactly go to public school, can they? But the conversation continued with school.

"So Jade, what school do you go to?" Layla asked, trying to get me into the conversation.

Will knew the answer, from our separate conversation, but I answered anyway. "Well, actually. I'm emancipated, so I can't go to school because of work." I tried to say the statement with gusto, as if it were cool living by myself. But that wasn't true.

"Oh, that's sad." Magenta said, sincerely.

"What grade were you in, before you quit?" Zach asked.

I thought about it for a minute. "I was just about to start my sophomore year."

"So you're like, seventeen?" Ethan asked.

"Yeah." I corrected. "So if I were in school, I'd be a junior."

"That's cool. Warren's a junior." Layla said.

Warren was obviously uncomfortable with the change of conversation from me to him. I nodded, like the comment was unimportant. "But we're all sophomores." Zach said with pride. He obviously liked the fact he was no longer a freshmen.

"So, why are you emancipated?" Magenta asked me.

"Um." I said, scratching the back of my neck. "My parents got divorced and my mom got custody. But mom's new boyfriend liked to throw stuff." I said, holding up my forearm to reveal a scar about six inches long.

The table seemed to cringe. "And dad and the new girlfriend liked to drink. A lot."

They all nodded and ended the conversation. School was once more brought up and I was content with listening quietly. I noticed that Mr. Peace also did not like to join in the conversation.

I took my napkin and scribbled "_Are you bored?_" and slid it over to him, returning my eyes to the table like nothing happened.

He read it, took my pen and wrote, sliding it back and returning his gaze to the table just the same. His words: **Insanely. But its pizza.**

I then wrote back: _Oh yeah. Never ditch pizza._ Again sliding it back to him.

He looked down when I accidentally touch his arm, which, I also noticed, was no longer leather clad. He scribbled one word, sliding it back to me.

I looked down at it. **Never. **I was disheartened that this is where the conversation had ended. But oh well. I returned my gaze and out of the corner of my eye, I noticed his posture relaxed. Because he wasn't talking to me anymore? Or because I didn't push the conversation?

Somehow, I figured it was both.

The pizza came soon after and most conversation was dulled by the crusty food. Except Zach, who seemed to enjoy having a conversation with himself as he ate. As I was laughing with them, my hunger lulled. I barely noticed it: until someone asked if I was going to eat.

I lied, saying I was fine. Even though I was starving. I felt bad eating the pizza and not being able to pay for any of it. I mean, three bucks wasn't going to get me far. I looked at the clock and silently cursed, standing up.

"Where you off to so soon?" Will asked, finishing his bite.

"I gotta work tomorrow." I said. "But it was great meeting you guys. We should hang out again soon."

There was a somewhat weak chorus of 'goodbye' as I got my skateboard and waved, leaving the restaurant. I now regretted my choice of not bringing a coat. It was eight o'clock and it was like 50 degrees out here.

I shivered, rubbing my hands together. I threw my skateboard down and kicked off. Somehow, I felt eyes on me as I rode down the street, turning at the correct road. I had only been riding for about five minutes when some jerk walking by clothes-lined me.

I fell with a thump to the ground, groaning as my head hit the concrete. I heard loud bouts of laughter. I struggled to get up, but the guy's shoe was in my face, setting on my collar bone. This movement kept me on the ground.

"New in town?" He asked, smiling cruelly. He had fairly short brown hair and wore a long black and white striped shirt with jeans. I then noticed the other guy; a husky kid about the same age. He had a baseball cap on backwards and a jacket over a white shirt, with jeans.

"Yes." I said, fearing he was going to step on my throat.

"I saw you were hangin' out with Stronghold and the losers." He said.

I assumed this to be Will's last name, as I hadn't actually got his last name. "Whatever you say." But my answer made him set his shoe on my throat, not yet putting down pressure. "Why were you hanging with the losers?" Husky asked. "They just asked me to have pizza." I said.

"Uh-huh." The tall kid said, looking at chubby. I took this diversion to take hold of tall guy's ankle and twist it sideways, throwing him to the pavement.

I stood up as quickly as I could, grabbed my skateboard and took off running as fast as my feet would carry me. But then I was forced to stop, seeing chubby in front of me. How had he moved so fast? No human alive was that fast. And how had I not seen him come up on me?

I turned to run the other way, but there was Tall Dude, as I was respectively calling him. I turned back to Husky. Still there; standing his ground and closing in. At this point, I was panicking slightly, fearing the worst.

"Duck!" I heard someone say and I dropped to my knees, covering my head instinctively.

The next moment, there was something shooting at both the guys surrounding me. What was that? Fire? No way. Not possible. But there was Tall Dude and Husky, on the ground, a big hole in both their shirts where it looked like it burned away.

"Yeah! You better run!" Said a voice from behind me.

"Will?" I asked in confusion as he helped me to my feet.

"Hey. You ok?" He asked, looking me over. The knees of my jeans were torn, revealing bloody flesh from my drop. Somehow, it never hurts until you see it. "Ow." I commented, looking over at my bloody jeans. "That's gonna suck to wash."

"You want me to take you home? I don't want you out here with Lash and Speed." Will said, looking around for the goons.

I gave a laugh. Will eyed me. "Lash and Speed? C'mon, that's so lame." I smiled.

He gave a small laugh. Then it clicked and my mind contorted in fear. "You can fly, have super strength, _and_ throw fire?" I asked, realizing my eyes had to have been the size of a dinner plate.

For some reason, he glanced back at the tree he was standing near when he had first called out the bullies. "Yeah, well, I usually get a little help."

"What's wrong?" I asked, also looking at the tree.

He sighed to himself, turning back to me. "Nothing. You want a lift home?"

"Yeah. My legs hurt just standing here." I said, bending my knees a little.

"Alright." He said, taking my hand and lifting off. Once we were in the air, above the city, he took out his phone and called Layla to tell her where he had gone. It was about a two minute flight to my apartment, since you didn't have to take all the side streets.

"Thanks." I said, as we touched down. "Tell your friends I had a really good time."

He smiled at me. "Sure. Oh yeah, Layla wanted me to give you her phone number." He said, taking out a piece of paper and writing down her cell phone number and his.

"Thanks." I said once more, leaving his presence and joining the building.

Once I was safely in my apartment, I went to the bathroom and carefully peeled my jeans off my legs and tossed them in the bath tub. I sat on the sink, cleaning out the several little cuts that made up my injured legs.

After I had successfully cleaned off the blood, I bandaged them up best I could with the supplies I had stashed, and slipped into a pair of old sleep shorts. Work was not something I was looking forward to.


	3. I'll Stop the World and Melt with You

[Author's Note: Ok. I'm hoping this chapter doesn't end up sounding like how it sounds in my head, a little bit. Which is kind of... 13-year-old-fan-girl... Anyway! Enjoy. :) ]

**Chapter Three**

Work came and went that week. The Captain America Crew, as I was now referring to them; stopped by every couple days and we hang out and talked on my breaks. Seeing as I didn't have school in the way and the manager understood my financial situation, he let me work what he liked to call 'more then part time, but not quite full time,' since I wasn't a legal adult and there were Child Labor Laws in affect for me.

Mr. Peace also seemed to come by the store more often then he really needed to. I won't say we hung out, because that would be lying. We didn't hang out and we didn't really talk. A 'hello' in passing, or something. But we always ended up on the same aisle. I was basically just a stocker/improv janitor. Meaning, I stocked the aisles that needed it and I cleaned up a mess as I came along it.

Today was cell phone day. The store had just gotten a new shipment of cell phones, the new models, so I had to change out the old display models with the new ones. Today was also one of those days when you start thinking and it leads to something and that leads to something else. And where you started thinking about something like, the weather, ended up thinking about something like music.

Yes, it was that kind of day.

I sighed, looking at the cell phones. I had never had one. My parents thought it was a useless device that served no purpose. But if my parents had had cell phones, I'm sure they would've picked up each other cheating on the other.

I wanted a cell phone, but I needed to use my money towards something realistic; like food and rent. I had gotten my paycheck yesterday and basically broke it into half. Money I needed for food, rent, other bills, and money I needed in case of emergency. A cell phone, in my view, was not an emergency.

I pulled the phones out, with the zip cord trailing behind. I used the tool I was given to disconnect the phone and replace the new model with the same device. I continued this with all of the other seven mobiles.

Someone tapped me on the shoulder and I nearly jumped out of my skin. It was Zach and Magenta. "Good God, you don't just sneak up on somebody like that." I said, placing my hand over my heart, trying to remember to breathe.

"Really? I'm surprised you didn't hear monster foot, over here." Magenta said to me, glancing at Zach.

"Ha, ha." He mocked.

"So, what can I do for you guys?" I asked, detaching and re-attaching a cell phone.

"Actually-" Magenta started.

"We need help." Zach said.

I looked at them both. "What do you need help with?" I asked, turning my attention to them.

"See we've got this friend, Wa-" Zach paused, getting an elbow in the ribs and a dirty look from Magenta. "Let's call him Bob." Zach rephrased and Magenta nodded. "Bob likes this chick, let's call her Brittney. And Brittney's new to town."

"We wanna know how we can hook them up for a date. See, Bob isn't very good with people and Brittney doesn't really know anyone. So we wanna get them together without Bob going postal and Brittney thinking we were pushing her into something." Magenta explained.

I nodded, thinking about it for a minute. "Personally, I say forget it."

"Why?" Magenta asked.

"Because Warren would freak. I don't think I'm his type." I said.

"Of course, you are." Zach said and Magenta glared at him. "I, I mean, Brittney is Bob's type. Fer cereal." He tried to save.

"Why do you want to hook me up with Warren anyway?" I asked.

"Because you're a great couple." Magenta said.

"Uh-huh." I nodded, going back to finish off the cell phones. "Well, I gotta get back to work." I said, picking up the empty box and walking away before they could answer. I wasn't sure I liked the idea of them trying to set me up with anyone; let alone Warren Peace.

I mean, duh he was gorgeous. But I couldn't be in a relationship by looks alone. And I didn't think our personalities really clicked.

"Jade Young, call on line 3. Jade Young, call on line 3." Said the speaker closest to me.

I walked over to it and answered. "Hello?"

"Hey Jade. It's Layla!" She said, seeming pretty happy.

"Oh, hey Layla. What's up?" I asked, leaning on clean up station six.

"I want pizza tonight. You wanna just have a girl's night? Me and you?" She asked.

I thought about it for a minute, looking at the nearest clock. "Sure, what time?" I asked.

"Like, 6." She said. "And wear something dressy!"

"Uh, why?" I asked.

"Because it's girl's night." She said this sentence as if it explained the cosmos.

"Which means…?" I asked, trailing off. I had never had a 'girl's night.'

She sighed like she was trying to explain math to someone who didn't understand it. "You dress up on girls nights so you can like, show off. Just dress up!" She exclaimed, hanging up on me.

"You have got to be kidding me." I rolled my eyes, hanging up the receiver. Then my mind started racing. I didn't have anything dressy to wear. I frowned. I guess I could get by with a pair of my nicer jeans and a cute shirt? I could scrounge that up, at the least.

I nodded to myself. This would work fairly well. I continued stacking and cleaning until my shift ended at 5:15. I went to my locker and took off my sales apron, putting it in my locker and taking out my backpack. I took out my skateboard and decided my board would most definitely be faster then waiting another ten minutes for the bus to come.

I threw down my board and scolded myself for again not bringing a jacket. It was late summer, early fall. How could I not think of this? When I got home, I rushed to clean myself up. I washed my face and got dressed carefully, remembering only when I tried to rip off my pants that I still had cut up legs. I took out ten dollars from my emergency fund and put it in my wallet.

I deserved a night out every month or so, I decided. And besides, ten bucks isn't going to put the poor in the poor house. Been there, done that. I decided on grabbing my light, dressier hoodie. It wouldn't get that cold.

Picking up my skateboard, I left the room with my little purse on my arm. It took me about 15 minutes to get to the pizza place this time. I became very worried, as I was running about five minutes late. I didn't think Layla minded, but still. I walked in and the entire restaurant is full, except for one or two tables.

I looked at the maître d' when I couldn't see Layla and smiled. "Hi, I was supposed to be meeting a friend here. Layla Williams?"

He nodded and said "Come this way." He led me through the crowd to a table in the back, which occupied none other then Mr. Warren Peace himself.

I looked at Warren for a minute. "Um, I was supposed to be meeting Layla here." I said, standing there awkwardly.

He looked at me and shook his head. "I do believe we've been had."

I sighed. "Don't tell me you were supposed to meet Will?" He nodded, and I thanked the maître d'. I took off my coat, hanging it on the back of the chair and sitting down. "I do indeed believe we've been had." I agreed with the boy.

"Will's been trying to set me up with you all week." He said, looking at me.

I sighed again. "Mine was actually Zach and Magenta, but Layla called me."

"So, would you like to have pizza with me?" He asked. I looked at him for a long moment. "What?" He asked, shrugging out of his leather jacket. This simple action made it very hard for me to concentrate.

"Um… Oh, nothing." I said, blushing. He just stared at me. "I would love to have pizza with you." I said, smiling at him. "So," I said, trying to think of a conversation starter. "Great friends of yours."

He laughed. "Yeah, they like to have a hand in everything."

"Oh really? I hadn't noticed." I said, free of sarcasm. He put down his menu to look at me like I was crazy. I smiled. "Kidding, kidding."

He shook his head at me. "What kind of pizza do you want?" He asked, not returning his eyes to the menu.

"Anything but mushrooms." I said.

"Alright, so that only leaves half the menu." He said with a straight face, nodding.

I laughed lightly. "Pepperoni and sausage is my favorite."

"Then pepperoni and sausage it is." He said, waving the waiter over. He gave the waiter our order. "So," He started after the waiter left. "Layla says you're prone to dangerous situations."

I laughed. "Well, you could say that. The first time I met Will, he saved me from getting raped and mugged." He nodded. "And I met Layla because of the shooting at the store."

"Yeah, I would call that prone to dangerous situations." Warren gave a small laugh.

"Well, what can I say? I'm the most exciting thing to happen to this town since The Commander and Jetstream." I laughed.

He looked me over. "Interested in heroes?" He asked.

I shook my head. "Not really. I was walking by electronics today and saw a news bulletin about some killer robot?" It was more of a question. He nodded. "I mean, heroes are cool, but I wanna see the unique powers, ya know. We all hear about the Commander and Jetstream. Well yeah, flying and super strength: two of the most common powers out there. Along with mind reading." I said.

He smiled. "You sound like someone who strives to avoid a cliché."

I laughed. "The only thing I strive for is to strive for something."

He nodded, looking around the room. I decided that now would be as good of a time as any. "Can I ask you something?" He nodded, looking back at me. I leaned over the table to whisper. "Is Zach a super?"

Warren looked at me for a long time. "Why do you ask?" His hesitance gave it away.

"Whenever he talks about school, it's like a secret. Like the other day. He was all whispering about his classes and stuff. I mean, I'm not sure, I just presume there's a school for supers-in-training. I mean, Fly Boy can't just fly all over the city looking for trouble. There has to be a method to it."

"Interesting theory." He said, sipping on his coke. "But why do you think Zach's a super?"

"Well, I think him and Magenta are."

"Why?" He repeated, looking at me intently.

"Well, for starters, the school thing. Secondly, the color scheme." I told him. "Color scheme?" He asked. I nodded. "Layla is all green, and she controls plants. So, I'm guessing if Zach wears yellow, he's like a sort of light."

Warren didn't say anything. "And I have no idea what Magenta is. But there's most likely a thing with the color scheme." Warren still didn't say anything, so my cheeks burned red. "I know it sounds really stupid." I said, looking at the wood floor.

"No. It isn't, actually." He said. I looked up at him and he had a kind of smile playing at his lips.

I'm convinced waiters know the exact moment you want your pizza delivered. Because our waiter suddenly appeared, setting the pizza, on a hot pad, on the table with our plates.

I said a quiet 'thank you' to the man and looked at the pizza. I hadn't eaten all day, so I was starving. And now that I actually had money, I could pay for it. "One piece or two?" I asked, taking possession of the server.

"Two, please." He told me and I gave him two pieces, and then gave myself two pieces. Conversation ceased as I began to eat. It had been about ten minutes later that Warren was laughing.

"What?" I asked, after swallowing the bite in my mouth.

"You just ate four pieces of pizza like you'd never see it again." He said.

I smiled. "Sorry. I eat like a hog." To accent this comment, I dabbed my mouth on my napkin in very Lady-like manner.

"Don't apologize. It's much better then being out with a girl who has a side salad with fat-free dressing."

"Pshh." I said, waving off the comment. "Fat-free? Nah, man. You only live once. Eat the fattiest foods possible."

He held his hand up for a high five. I frowned as my hand touched his and I held his palm for a moment. "Warren, you're burning up." I said, concerned that he wasn't well.

He pulled one side of his mouth up, making a type of sideways smile. "It's ok. I'm been 99 degrees my whole life. My mom hated it. She said it was like giving birth to a hot potato."

His attempt to defuse my concern failed. But I just looked at him. "Are you really ok?" I was trying to keep my voice low.

Warren held my gaze, nodding. "Really." His smile made me forget why I was worried.

"If you say so." I said, going back to my pizza. A few minutes later, I wiped my hands. "Well, Mr. Peace. This has been a great evening, but I should probably go." I said, pulling my wallet out of my purse.

"Don't worry about it." Came his voice. "You sure?" I asked. He smiled. "If I wanted you to pay, I wouldn't have said anything." He said, pulling out his wallet and tossing a twenty on the table.

"Well, thank you." I said, putting my wallet back and picking up my skateboard.

He smiled, standing and pulling his leather jacket over his well-developed arms. No. Can't think like that. He's way out of my league. I nodded to myself, as this was a logical thought. "Can I give you a ride home?"

This question took me a minute to process. I mean, I was actually standing there thinking about it. "Um, no, thanks. I live like five blocks from here." I said, loosely throwing my thumb over my shoulder as I slid my arms through me hoodie.

"Me too. I'll give you a lift." He said, leading the way outside. He didn't exactly come across as the guy you argue with. So I agreed. He held the door open for me and I thanked him. I was expecting to walk towards the parking lot, but he led me into the side ally that parked a black crotch rocket.

"Whoa." I murmured, the impact of its beauty making me stop in my tracks.

"You ever been on a motorcycle before?" He asked, standing to the side of it.

"Um, once; when I was, like, eight?" I offered.

Warren's booming laughter made me ease up. It was odd. The look of him made me tense and the smile on his lips made me melt. No, gr. Stop thinking like that. You're friends. Only friends. No matter how many times Layla tries to set you up with him.

I again nodded to myself, coming to stand next to him. "Um, my board?" I asked. He took it from my hand, his warm one brushing mine. Our eyes caught for a moment, but I wasn't able to handle the intensity of his gaze. I blushed, looking away from him.

He easily slid my skateboard into the compartment under the passenger seat. "Big compartment." I commented.

Warren smiled, nodding. He held out a helmet for me and I took it, taking off my purse to put it over my shoulder. But his warm hand again brushed mine and he tossed the unholy thing in the compartment with my skateboard.

"I don't like how new I am at this." I commented.

"Then, I'll just have to show you the ropes." He said, pulling on his helmet. Even with his face hidden, he was still handsome.

Blah.

I slid my helmet on and climbed into the back section of the seat. He slid effortlessly into the seat in front of me. His hands gently took hold of my wrists, wrapping them around his waist.

Needless to say, in this position, it was _very_, **very** hard not to think he was cute or that he had rock hard abs; which I could feel through his leather jacket. "You doin' ok?" He asked and I was suddenly aware that there was a speaker in my helmet.

"Geez, you scared me. I'm fine." I told him, holding on tighter.

Now, I'd like to state that if you ask me about this situation, I would gladly tell you that I held on tighter because I hadn't been on a motorcycle in such a long time. But the truth is, it just got me closer to him. Literally.

"Whatever happens, just lean with the bike." He told me through the speaker in his helmet. "Got it." I said and he kicked the bike to start it.

* * *

As we were riding, I almost forgot to give him directions to my apartment. He followed my directions easily and we were sitting in front of my apartment about six minutes later.

He killed the engine and got off. I went to step off and my foot got stuck. He caught me almost before I even began to tip. "Um, thanks." I said, blushing once more.

"I'm trying to decide." He said, standing me back up and taking off his helmet.

"About what?" I asked, taking off mine as he opened the compartment for my skateboard and purse.

"Whether you blush more because you're embarrassed, or just because you're around me." He gave a small grin as he handed me back my things.

The red in my cheeks was impossible to get rid of. "Uh, well, I, uh…" I began to stutter. He smiled at me, walking me to the door. "Well, Mr. Peace, thank you for a lovely evening; even if it was a set up."

There was that sideways smile again. "To be completely honest," He started, opening the door for me. "It was the best set up I've ever had." I stepped inside and assumed to continue our conversation this way, but he stepped inside with me.

Well, it was nice that he wanted to walk me to my apartment. "I'm scared to ask, but how many set ups have you been on?"

His laugh broke through my thoughts and was the only thing I could concentrate on. "A couple. Will and Layla try about every other month."

"Well, since we're being honest and all. You're my first set up." I said, not like I had to clarify it. Warren smiled at me. "Do I make you smile or are you just doing it to be polite?" I asked, starting up the stairs.

He looked at me for a long moment. "You make me smile. Its one of the qualities I like about you."

I smiled. "And again, since we're being honest; I don't think anybody's ever said they liked more than one quality about me." I said, pointing out the plural of his statement. I wasn't quite sure if he meant to make it plural, but it made me feel nice.

"Then they haven't known you very long, have they?" He asked and I was surprised by the sincerity that reached his eyes. I wasn't sure how to respond. Before I knew it, we were on my floor and I walked to my door.

"Well, this is me." I said, digging for my key. He nodded. "Well, if you ever want to have a movie night or something, I'm in 514." He told me, and this comment hit me like a slap to the face.

"You live here? In this apartment building?" I asked.

He nodded. "I mean, I've walked a few girls to their doors, but some find it creepy." He said.

"I thought you were just being polite." I smiled.

Warren smiled. "Yeah, that too."

I laughed and he smiled. After we both settled, I gave him a warm smile. "Good night, Mr. Peace."

He smiled, stepping closer to me. I looked up at him, wondering what he was doing. But before my brain could think of anything logical, his lips touched my check.

All too soon, he broke away, leaving me wanting, _craving_ more of his touch. "Call me Warren." His warm breath blew onto my skin.

And then he was gone. He walked away to the stairs and I stepped into my apartment.

* * *

[Andddd that's the end of this chapter. What do you think? I'd love to have anybody voice their opinions. Let me know. Next chapter soon. :) ]


	4. We're All Held Captive, Out From the Sun

[Author's note: This is kind of a long chapter. I'm really hoping it makes as much sense to you guys as it does to me. Thanks so much to frozenangel1988 and my two guest reviewers! I hope you guys enjoy this new chapter. :) ]

* * *

**Chapter Four**

I sighed heavily, leaning my head on the inside of my door. I was off in la-la land when I heard my apartment phone ring. I picked it up, knowing exactly who it would be. "Hello?"

"You have Intel to report?" Asked the man.

I nodded, then realized he couldn't see it. "Yeah."

"Well…?" Asked the man. He was testier then he usually was.

"Layla and Will are Supers. Zach might be a super, I can't quite tell yet. I don't see how Magenta and Ethan are supers." I reported.

"And Peace?"

I swallowed. I didn't want to tell him about Warren. I didn't want to tell him anything involving him. A voice echoed in my ear. "Agent Cross, give me your report." He was getting mad.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. "What about Peace?" I could almost feel him glaring at me through the phone. "Give. Me. Your. Report." He said again. I sighed. I couldn't, not give it to him. "Peace is not a super. He shows no signs of any tests that I've given him."

"That is not what I wanted to hear." He said, angrily.

"Well, that's what I got. If you wanted better recon, you should've given me a cell phone before you kicked me out of the van." I said, glaring at the wall, pretending it was his face.

A heavy sigh from the other end. "Fine." He hissed. "You'll get it tomorrow." Then the dial tone.

I slammed the phone down, even though it was useless. I sighed after a moment. It was pointless to argue with the man. He was too damn stubborn to think otherwise. I hated the man, don't get me wrong, but I needed to think of a way to avoid getting him more information about Warren.

I walked to the fridge out of boredom. Nothing in there except honey mustard. I sighed, banging my head on the freezer door. I went back to the phone and hit redial, hoping they hadn't already changed the number. I was in luck, seeing as it took about 15 minutes to change the number.

"What?" Growled the man I had previously been talking to.

"If you want me to stay on this mission, you better send me more money so I don't starve." I then slammed the phone down. This indeed had the effect I wanted. For when I checked my mail the next morning right after breakfast, there were two packages waiting.

I waited until I was back in my apartment to open the packages. The first was a box about six inches long by three inches deep. I opened it to find a slick looking black cellular device. I messed with the device for a moment, to find it slid sideways, revealing a full keyboard. "Nice." I smiled, setting it on the table. They had already activated the phone so I just had to get the number out of the 'My Name Card' thing.

The second package was a larger envelope. When I opened this, I found one thousand dollars inside. "Well, hell. I'm not that starving." I said, looking over the money. I never had that much money at one time. I took out two twenties to put in my wallet.

I folded the bills in half and went to stick it under the false board in my dresser. I assumed that The Agency put it there. I pulled the board up and stared at the black hunk of metal they called a Glock. What caliber was it? I didn't even remember.

Upon giving me this, I refused with all my might that I would not use it. It was, however, forced into my possession and I was told to use it if I needed. I was also given a shotgun that was kept under the false board in my closet. I tried not to think about what would happen if I actually _had_ to use the Glock.

I pushed that thought away and stuck the money next to the butt of the gun. I knew how to shoot it and I was good. However, they had given it to me incase I needed to shoot some_one_, not some_thing_.

I sighed, putting the false board back in place and grabbing my skateboard. I had no doubt they'd send a car if I told them I needed it, but I didn't need it. I got my wallet, filled it with the bills I had left on the table, and put it in the back of my pants. I took the new phone and put it in my pocket in case they tried to call me again.

Grabbing my coat, I slipped it over my shoulders and left the apartment. I raced down the stairs, as I was going to be late. The packages had distracted me. I threw down my board as soon as I hit cement. I kicked off harder then I really needed to and almost lost my balance.

I regained myself and forced on to work. By the time I reached the time clock in the back room, I was two minutes late. Just as I turned around, in came my boss. He glared at me heavily. "What's the excuse this time?"

If you haven't guessed, time management is not my best skill. "I wasn't watching the clock." I told him honestly.

"Uh-huh. That was the story last week." He told me.

I frowned. It was the truth, but I knew I wouldn't get him to realize that. I walked to my locker, putting in my skateboard and my jacket, taking out my sales apron. I then went into the back to grab a box to stock. Peanuts or mayo. I shrugged, grabbing whatever box was closest.

Mayo it is. I hefted the box onto the dolly and rolled it away. I was almost to the correct aisle when there was lots of flying hair and people running at me. When I opened my eyes, I was on the floor with the dolly cutting into my leg. "Oh my god, are you ok?" Layla asked, pulling the dolly off me.

"Uh, yeah." I groaned, standing up. "Where's the fire?"

"SO?!" Layla and Magenta rang out at the same time. "How'd it go?"

"How'd what go? My first set up?" I asked, putting my hands on my hips.

"Duh, we're not talking about the Super Bowl." Magenta said, even though it was October and the Super Bowl wasn't until February.

I sighed, shaking my head. "It went fine." I said, wanting to be as vague as possible. I headed towards my aisle, hoping to get them to go away.

"What kind of pizza did you get?" Layla asked.

"Did he pay?" Magenta chanted.

"Did he drive you home?" Layla said.

"Was it romantic?" Magenta pushed.

I stopped walking and looked at them. They looked expectantly back at me. But I had to gain their trust. Ok, well, I already had their trust if they were setting up a total stranger with one of their friends. Therefore, I had to _keep_ that trust.

I sighed heavily. "He paid. He drove me home. Yes, it was romantic. He walked me to my door and kissed me on the cheek. Happy?" I asked, not really liking the fact I supplied unneeded information.

Magenta and Layla both squealed like fan girls of sorts. I covered my ears, opening my eyes only when the high-pitched sound had died. "Done?" I asked. I wasn't trying to be irritable. I really wasn't. But this was getting harder then I thought it would. I needed to change the subject.

"Hey, you guys have cell phones?" I asked, ripping open the cardboard to stock the shelf closest to me.

"Yeah." Magenta and Layla said at the same time, holding up different variations of the same device.

I nodded slowly. "Well, I had enough money so I bought one the other day. And I have no idea how to use it. Think you could help me out after work?" I asked, picking up a jar of white fluffy stuff.

"Sure!" Layla exclaimed. "Come by Will's house later and we'll have a movie night."

"Sweet. I don't have to work tomorrow, so that'd be great." I smiled. Alright, so it was a fake smile. But they couldn't tell the difference. Part of me hoped Warren wouldn't come. I didn't want to tell The Agency about him, but I didn't want the consequences if I failed to report to them.

"So, you guys just come by to ask about my set up?" I couldn't bring myself to call it a date. That would mean we were dating, which would mean we were going out with each other, and that would make us a couple. I swallowed hard at this fact. The Agency would nail me to a wall and leave me there if I was going out with the mission.

"…but now we need food for tonight." Layla smiled.

I smiled back, only catching half of what she said. "That's cool. Need any direction?" I asked.

"Chips?" Layla called out from the list now in her hand. "Aisle 8." I told her. "Crackers?" She asked. "Same aisle." I informed her. "Do you still have those cheese balls?" She asked.

"Uh…" I thought for a second. "Yeah. Right next to the block cheese." I told her. "And…" She said, scanning the paper. "French onion dip."

"Aisle 11 with the sour cream."

She smiled. "Thanks, Jade. Well, we're leaving. See ya tonight." She said, giving me a hug then leaving with Magenta.

"Jade." I laughed at the name after they were out of sight, as I continued with my job. How the hell had they come up with that name? I mean, really. I didn't even like the name. But I was told all agents needed 'codenames', so this was mine. "I've never even met anyone named Jade." I said to myself.

But work came and went with only a broken jar of olives to soil my day. My boss went off like fireworks on the 4th of July. Again, Layla didn't tell me what time it was and I didn't know how the hell to use my cell, so I dialed her from my apartment when I got home.

After talking for 15 minutes about….nothing really, I found the time for this shin-dig was 7:30. I had to change my shirt, since when I broke the jar of olives, it poured all over me. So, the shirt I was wearing smelled of vinegar brine.

I changed and just as the clock hit 7:15, there was a knock on my door. I was in the middle of putting on one sock when I abandoned the effort to answer the door. "Warren?" I asked, surprised to see him in front of my door.

He was dressed in the usual worn jeans, red shirt and leather jacket with fingerless gloves. He gave me a nod. "I was told to pick you up."

"Pick me up?" I repeated.

He nodded. "To go to Will's, but if you're in the middle of something, like getting dressed, I can wait."

Why was he looking at my feet? Oh right, I was only wearing one sock. "Ah, well, you wanna come in?" I asked, holding open the door. He nodded, stepping in. I now felt small compared to his 6'3" frame. "I'll be like, two minutes at tops." I told him, going into the bedroom to reclaim my sock. I heard him sit on the couch as I did this.

I quickly tied my shoes and returned to the living room. Ok, I had my wallet in my back pocket and I had my room key. There was something I was forgetting.

"Is that yours?" Warren asked, pointing to my new mobile on the table.

"Ah." I said, remembering I needed to bring it with me. "Yes. I bought it the other day. Cool huh?" I said, holding it out for him.

He opened it with a movement that only showed practice. He looked up at me then back at the phone before handing it back to me. "That's not supposed to be out for another week, isn't it?" He asked.

Great. It was just like the Agency to send me a phone that was so new, no one else had one. "Uh." I said, looking at the device. "I…don't know. My…uncle sent it."

"You said you bought it." He said.

Damn. I did. "Well, yeah." I said, thinking fast. "I mean, I gave him the money to buy it. He sent it over to me. He works at the factory."

"Those are made in China." He informed me.

Damn it. He was determined to catch me in something. "I'm… an eighteenth Chinese." I told him.

He quirked a smile at me. "I'm a fourth Vietnamese and you don't have a drop of Chinese blood in your body."

"Step Uncle. He married into my mom's side." He was bound and determined to catch me up.

"Oh yeah?" He asked, defying me as he stood closer to me.

"Yeah." I said, challenging him. "I can say hello." I smiled at him.

"So can three-fourths of the population." He said, coming closer still.

A lump formed in my throat and I was torn between my head and my heart. "We, uh, we should, um, get going." I said, looking around for my jacket. I pulled away from him, slipping it on and zipping it up.

I went to walk by Warren, but he blocked my way, leaning down until his mouth was near my ear. "What are you afraid of?" My eyelids fell and I lost my breath. It took a moment, but I somehow managed answered him. "Just give me time." I whispered back.

He took this as a satisfactory answer. He nodded, looking me in the eyes the whole time. "Shall we?" He asked. "I suppose we shall." I said, following him out of my apartment.

He then led me down to the garage in the back of the building, which I hadn't even known was there. He tossed me a helmet, which I caught as swiftly as I could. I pulled it on and got behind Warren on the motorcycle. He started it up and we were like a flash of light as he sped away from the building.

With my hands around his waist, I wasn't even processing where we were until the bike stopped. "That was fast." I commented. Warren laughed as he climbed off and took off his helmet. "Babe, that took ten minutes."

"Hmm. I must've zoned." All of my focus went into that sentence. Had he seriously just called me **babe**? Where did that come from? Just, why?

Grrrr. This boy was NOT helping me not like him. I shook my head, setting my helmet on the seat next to his. I mean, the helmet that he had loaned to me for riding. Yeah, that was it.

He led the way to Will's front door and didn't even knock as he opened it. He kicked his shoes off and I did the same. I awkwardly followed him, feeling out of place. Real houses were rare from where I came from.

I mean, it's not like I'd never seen one before. But I had never seen one this large; or this decorated. You could definitely tell this family wasn't going anywhere soon.

Warren walked through the hall. The living room was on the right, a staircase leading to the upstairs was on the left, and the kitchen was in front of us. Warren led us into the kitchen where he pulled off his coat and threw it over a chair, which he then sat down.

"Warren, hey." Layla said from in front of the stove. She was standing in front of a pan of boiling water. Warren pulled out the chair next to him and looked at me.

I took off my coat and copied his actions. "Hey." Will said, coming into the room. He stood in front of me, holding open his arms. I stood and gave him a hug. Until this point, I had forgotten that he was super strong. "Will." I choked. "Can't breathe."

"Oh, sorry." He said with a smile, setting me back on my feet.

"Thanks." I said, taking a deep breath. Will setting me back down must have been the trigger action, because everyone came over and gave me a hug: Layla, Ethan, and Zach. Magenta wasn't coming tonight for some reason I hadn't caught.

Warren smiled at me and I blushed. "So what's with the water?" I asked Layla.

"Hot chocolate. You want some?" She asked.

"Sure." I smiled.

"So, tonight you can pick from these three." Will said, laying the movies out on the table. "These are all horrors." I commented. "Yeah, War and I are huge horror buffs." Will smiled.

I nodded. My mom had never let me see horror movies. "My Bloody Valentine, Devour, or The Haunting in Connecticut." I said quietly to myself. I read the back cover of each of them and thought. "They all sound horror worthy."

"That's the point." Layla said, coming to sit on Will's lap. She just looked into his eyes intensely for a moment and I had to look away. I wasn't lying when I told them that story about my parents. I have just been emancipated for longer then I said. I've only see real love and care a few times and that time in the kitchen was one of them.

"Here's your hot chocolate, Jade." Zach said from the counter.

I was thankful for the distraction. I'm not good at handling feelings. Like, real, live, passionate feelings and especially if they're mine. I blew on the beverage before taking a sip. Mmm... mint. I returned to my spot next to Warren and looked at him. "You want a drink? It's really good." I said, holding out the cup to him.

He took it, nodding thanks. He took a sip and handed it back to me. It was odd. Around me when we were alone, Warren smiled a lot and laughed, but here around his friends, he was calm and mellow.

Let me repeat myself. Around a complete stranger, he's loud and fun; around the friends he's probably known for years, he's quiet and relaxed looking. Tell me again how that works.

Ethan had a look of disgust on his face when I took my next sip of cocoa. "What?" I asked, wondering about the look. "You just swapped spit." Ethan said, almost cringing. The whole kitchen now looked at Warren and me. "It's just cocoa." I said, as if this was one of those trick questions.

"But you let him drink out of it!" Zach added, showing off the same look as Ethan gave. "Why? Are you sick?" I asked, looking at Warren. "Because, that could get me fired. Tell me now." I was kidding, of course. Sipping from my cocoa wasn't worse then kissing and I'd never caught anything from that.

"Oh, I legally have to tell you that I'm HIV positive." He said with a straight face.

"Damn." I said. "Mine just went away."

Ethan and Zach both shared the same look of horror while Will and Layla laughed. "You guys have a really sick sense of humor." Ethan informed us.

"Thanks. I try." I said, with a bright smile. I stopped smiling when a tall man came into the room with a pretty woman behind him, both wearing glasses. They stopped, seeing me. "Will, is this your new friend?" The woman asked and I presumed it to be his mom and dad.

"Yeah. Mom, Dad, this is Jade. Jade, this is my mom and dad." Will said weakly.

I stood up and held my hand out. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Stronghold."

"Steve." He corrected me. "Nice grip you've got there." He told me and I smiled. I turned to his mom, but she put her hands on her hips. "I'm Josie, and in this house we give hugs." She said, holding out her arms.

It was an unusual feeling, being hugged by a mom. Not my mom, of course. But still. When she released me, I sat down next to Warren and he winked. I assumed this to be the sign that I had won their approval.

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[Author's Note: Like I said, long chapter. But hopefully you guys like it. Don't forget; reviews feed the story. Let me know what you think: good, bad, or indifferent.]


	5. Forgotten Thoughts of Yesterday

[Author's Note: Ok, so this chapter is really long, but I wrote maybe, four whole chapters today? I had a lot of free time between laundry. :P But I wasn't really sure how to break it up? So I hope it's not pointless long. You can tell me if it is.

Also, this is where the whole M for Mature rating comes in. There is talk of violence and sexual abuse. If you disapprove, then you might want to just skip over that part. But it's kind of essential to the whole plot line in later chapters. In addition, there's mild cussing. Ok, it's mild to me. I cuss a moderate amount.

Anywho, I just wanted to give a little bit of a warning there. Please enjoy!]

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**Chapter Five**

"So, Jade. Will says you work at the Maxville Shopping Center." Mr. Stronghold said.

"Yeah. I just stock shelves." I said, wondering how this could possibly be made into a conversation.

"Any good sales lately?" Josie joked.

"There was a sale on Brussels sprouts if you're interested." I said, honestly and Will's face fell. "That's just cruel." He told me. "Well, she asked." I laughed. It was a reliving sound.

"Ok, well. Movie time." Layla said, picking up My Bloody Valentine and hopping off Will's lap to run into the living room. I looked at Warren with concern. "Is she always this hyper?"

Warren nodded. "Sadly. And she's only had a cup of hot chocolate." He said, standing up and leading me into the living room. I bit my bottom lip as his hand slid to the small of my back.

His touch left me as we entered the living room. Zach and Ethan flopped on the floor and Will and Layla took up the couch so that left… the love seat. But, of course it did. Layla must hate me. She is draining every ounce of self-control I have in my entire body. Warren carelessly flopped on the love seat and I sat next to him as the movie rolled.

Five minutes in there was a shrill ringing to be heard. Everyone looked at me and I then remembered I had a cell phone in my possession. "Oh, uh, sorry." I said, digging out the device. "Help?"

Warren pushed a green button and a counter came up on the screen. "Sweet, thanks." I said, putting it to my ear and walking out of the room to an empty one and closing the door. "Hello?" I asked.

"Where are you?" Said an angry man on the other end.

"Um, I'm at Will's. We're having a movie night." I said, watching the door carefully.

"Why?" He asked.

"You wanted recon. This is recon. Stop calling me when I'm busy." I said, pulling the phone away to look at the screen. If the green button answered the call, then maybe the red button stopped it.

I pushed this button and the counter stopped moving, then blinked, then the screen saver came up. I nodded to myself, leaving the room to rejoin Warren on the love seat.

"Who was that?" Layla asked.

"Oh, uh, my uncle." I said with a smile.

"The one who bought you the phone?" Warren asked.

"Warren, I told you. I bought the phone. He mailed it to me." I smiled at him. I knew he was trying to trip me up, but I was more careful than that.

He nodded, turning his attention back to the screen. I was forcefully aware of Warren's arm draped across the back of the love seat, behind my shoulders. I laughed inwardly at myself. His arm wasn't actually around my shoulders; it was simply draped behind the back of the couch. Yeah, of course it was.

And then there was a pick axe and lots of blood.

Instinctively, I moved towards Warren. He didn't take his eyes off the screen as his arm really did move to sit against my shoulders. I covered my eyes as blood sprayed over the main characters face.

I didn't scream, though, through the whole movie. I cringed: a lot. And covered my eyes. And moved ever closer to the guy next to me. Warren wasn't bothered by any of my actions.

"I'm going to have nightmares tonight, I guarantee you." I said as the credits rolled.

Will laughed. "Well, the only time Warren moved all night was to get closer to you."

"Ah. You're mean." I laughed, trying to cover up my blush.

"Hey, if you have nightmares, you can just run to Warren." Zach said, making kissing noises like a junior high nerd would.

"Yeah, since you live in the same building." Ethan said.

"Nice." Will said, holding his hand out for a fist bump.

But Warren was having none of it. "You want ice cream?" Warren asked, looking at me.

I noticed that everyone else was looking at us. How did he just ignore them? "Uh, sure." I said, standing up. Well, ok, it was more of a question then anything.

"We'll come with." Layla said, smiling. Will shook his head. "That's the fourth date this week."

"That's fine. But you and Lover Boy need another booth." Warren said, walking into the kitchen. Josie and Steve sat in the two chairs that didn't occupy Warren's and my coats. "Enjoy the movie?" Josie asked Layla.

"Yes, Josie." Layla said, winking at Josie.

I waited until we were outside to ask Warren if we had been set up again. "Yeah, but it was a good movie." He said, smiling for the second time that night. I shrugged it off, getting behind Warren on his motorcycle.

He revved the engine and took off. Even with a couple red lights in the way, Warren and I still got to the ice cream parlor before Will and Layla did flying. It must be cool to have a boyfriend that could fly. Wait, no. Scratch that. It must be cool having a boyfriend.

Yeah, I set the bar low.

But Will and Layla arrived by the time we had ordered and sat in the booth. Despite Warren's only rule, Will and Layla sat with us. Layla sat next to me while Will sat next to Warren.

Immediately, Will and Layla launched into a conversation, like they hadn't talked in weeks. After a few minutes, I couldn't keep up with their conversation so I just looked at Warren, who had glanced at me at the same time.

"It's really no use trying to listen to them. They both talk like their lives depend on it." Warren informed me.

I nodded. "I've noticed."

And at the same time that Will elbowed Warren, Layla elbowed me. But Warren cringed where I just look annoyed. "Ah man." Will said, looking guilty.

"Are you ok?" I asked, suddenly worried for Warren.

"Yeah." He said, glaring at Will. Will smiled guiltily. "Let's get out of here." Warren said, pushing Will out of the booth. Layla stood and let me out. We threw away our trash and I followed Warren outside.

"So where to?" I asked, hoping he wasn't going to take me home. I wanted to be out as long as possible tonight.

"Hmm…" He said, thinking about it. "How about the park?" He asked.

"That'd be nice." I said with a smile. He smiled back at me. I heard once, that if you want a guy to hold your hand, you brush his hand with yours. I wondered if that worked. I walked along side Warren and gently brushed his hand. I couldn't even tell if he could feel it with his fingerless gloves on.

Before I could try again, he gently took my hand in his. He glanced at me and smiled. "Smart." He commented.

"What was?" I asked, playing dumb.

"The hand move. But I was about to hold your hand anyway." He said, as we walked hand in hand. I blushed and he let out a chuckle. "There you go again. You do that a lot."

"I can't help it. I haven't felt like this in a while." I said as we reached the park.

"Felt like what?" He asked.

I thought about it for a moment as we sat on the swings and I gazed at the stars. "Happy." I said, looking back over at him.

He regarded me carefully. "What do you mean?"

"Well, when my parents got divorced, my world kind of became a living hell." I said, looking down at the gravel between my feet. I was scared to look at him. "I stayed with my mom, but her boyfriend was abusive. And all the money she got from the divorce went into their joint account. So if they broke up, he could still have the money."

I glanced at him, wondering if he was still there. Something in the back of my head said he'd just walk away at some point during my rant. He watched me intently.

"After that, I stayed with my dad for a while. But his girlfriend got drunk and stoned a lot. Most of the time she'd bring druggie friends over and they'd have a coke or meth party. I hated that the most."

"Why?" He asked quietly.

A lump formed in my throat; there was no way I could look at him. But the little voice in the back of my head, just said tell him. "My dad was never really there for me, ya know? So when he brought these 'friends' over," I used my fingers as quotation marks.

"They were mostly guys. And he'd just leave me with them. He, uh," I paused, pushing my hand through my hair. "He even put sound proof pads up in one of the downstairs rooms so he wouldn't hear me screaming."

I stopped there. I couldn't tell him anymore. I couldn't reveal any more of myself. It hurt so much even now to just talk about it and it was years ago. His hand gently touched mine and I looked up at him. He was there for me. That's what his gesture was telling me, that his words couldn't get through.

"After that, it took a year for the judge to grant my emancipation. And I've been traveling ever since."

I looked over at him and he was just… staring at me. I couldn't tell what the look in his eyes was. Pity? Sorrow? Regret? But something else. "Will you go somewhere with me?"

This question took me off guard. "Somewhere, like your place…?" I asked carefully.

He quickly shook his head. "I want to show you something. Out in the woods."

I thought about it. He seemed sincere. I nodded. I thought about it on our walk back to his motorcycle. If he asked me to do something, anything, I probably would. Getting on the motorcycle was hard for me. Not physically, as in climbing on. But being so close to him, when I just opened up half of what I had; half of my whole being.

_Damn. I'm going to blow this before I'm even going to be questioned next. Think of the agency, think of the agency,_ I repeated to myself. I swallowed and he drove us away from the ice cream shop, heading for the forest.

We had been in the forest for about five minutes when he slowed down and pulled off onto a side road to the left. When the road ended, he parked and shut off the bike. He helped me climb off and we set our helmets on the seat.

He took my hand and lead my away from the machine. Every once in a while, I'd look back to see if I could see the black metal; but soon it was gone. And I realized the longer we walked, the darker it got. "How can you see anything?" I asked him.

"I've been coming here since I was a little kid. We'll be there in just a couple minutes." He said and he continued leading me. Our pace slowed as he had to help me climb over rocks and fallen trees.

Finally, he stopped. "What's wrong?" I asked.

"We're here." He informed me.

"Alright, but where is here?" I asked.

"Here, sit here." He told me, guiding me to a flat rock. How did he know that was there? I couldn't see anything, at all. "Alright. I'm going to show you something, but you have to swear you won't scream."

"You've watched horror movies with me. I don't scream; I jump."

"Everybody screams. You just have to promise you won't." He said. I swallowed a lump in my throat. He was starting to scare me. I couldn't even see him anymore. He could be leaving me, for all I knew.

"I promise." I told him, but to me it sounded like a choked whisper.

Suddenly, a light blazed in front of me and it was so sudden in the darkness, I had to cover my eyes. Why didn't he tell me he had a flashlight? Wait, he didn't take anything from his bike with us.

Slowly, I lowered my hand to be able to see where the light was coming from. My mouth fell open and I moved back instinctively, falling off the rock and onto the marshy ground. Warren just stood there, both of his arms on… fire? I gapped. "You… b-but… fire." I said, acting like I had never seen it before.

"Are you scared?" He asked, turning down the intensity.

All I could do was gaze at the fire coming from his arms. I barely even heard him talk. "No." I said quietly, admiring the flame. Then it clicked. "That's why you changed the subject at the restaurant."

"Yeah. I usually run at a good 104.2" He told me.

"Oh yeah, point two really adds a lot." I smiled at him.

His arms distinguished themselves and he smiled back, taking my hand, pulling me closer. My eyes had adjusted to the darkness and I could see his outline. I stopped smiling, looking deep into his eyes. I didn't know what to feel, standing here in the middle of the woods with him, inches from me.

He stared at me, almost as if he was seeing into my soul. And I couldn't help but feel attracted to him, but I couldn't do it. As he leaned closer to me, barely parting his lips, I knew I couldn't. I turned away, screaming at myself inside. How could I not? How could I just turn away?

But The Agency was on my mind and I was completely aware of what they thought about me on this mission. I couldn't screw it up; regardless of how I thought I felt for him. "I'm sorry." I whispered to him.

It was almost as if he deflated. "I understand." He said quietly, turning away from me.

"What? No. Warren!" I said, yanking on his arm. He looked back at me, hurt. "It's not like that." I said, begging, pleading him to understand. "Did you even hear me earlier, at the park?"

Warren just stood there, watching me, probably not sure how to answer.

But Damnit, I wanted to blow up. "I got thrown in a windowless, sound proof basement to be raped and beaten half to death." I said louder then I needed to. I couldn't stop myself; I took a swing at him.

He looked at me in surprise after my fist collided with his chest. I was mad as hell. "Raped. Over and over. And when I finally quit screaming, they laughed at me. Do you know what it feels like to cry yourself into unconsciousness while you can't even stop the bleeding?"

He just stood there, letting me punch him in the chest until I collapsed crying. My knees buckled and I just sat there, sobbing. He stood there for a moment and I almost forgot he was even there. "I'm so sorry." He said, kneeling in front of me.

I could barely lift my head to look at him. Here I was, exposing myself. And he looked like he could cry. "Can you just take me home please?"

He nodded, taking my hand to help me stand up. When his motorcycle came into view, I let go of his hand to wipe my eyes. He just stood there. After I wiped my eyes, I looked up at him.

"Now we have to stay friends." I mumbled.

"Why's that?" He asked, curiosity dripping from the words.

"You know my secret and I know yours." I said, walking past him towards the bike.

He grabbed my hand, making me look back up at him. "I won't tell anyone." He said.

"I know. That's why I told you." I said, turning back to the bike. I knew he wouldn't tell anyone. I could see that in his eyes. I pulled on the helmet while he followed suit.

* * *

When we got back to the apartment building, I tried to walk away from him. He called after me, but he just let me leave. It's not that I didn't want to be around him. It's just that all I wanted to do was cry myself to sleep.

I got into my apartment and changed into pajama pants and a tank. I opened all the windows in my apartment, welcoming in the cold. I sat on my couch, wrapped in a blanket. I cried. No, I sobbed. I had done so well of repressing those horrid memories, and here they were, flooding over me. They were threatening to drown me in my own tears.

A knock at the door sounded itself. I ignored it, quieting my sobs. Another knock. "Jade. Please answer the door." Warren called from the opposite side of the wood.

I gave in after ten minutes of him calling for me. I'm sure I looked like a train wreck as I opened the door. "What do you want?" I hadn't meant it harshly; just wondering why the fuck he wouldn't leave me alone to flood my apartment.

"I'm not normally someone to help rescue people. I've ignored people in need most of my life. But. I want to help you. Please let me?" He was begging with me as he held up a tub of vanilla ice cream and three different kinds of chocolate. "I didn't know what you liked so I got dark, milk, and white."

This was a hundred times more than anybody had ever done for me. Except the Agency, but that was their job. I couldn't tell him no; that I wanted to be left alone. So I took the tub and the dark chocolate and headed into the kitchen.

He closed the door behind him and I heard his coat land on the chair at the dining table. I couldn't bring myself to say anything as he just stood there. I pulled out a plastic take-out spoon from the drawer and served Warren and myself ice cream.

I held his bowl out to him. He took it with the spoon I was also holding for him. I broke up the chocolate and covered my ice cream with it. I was actually surprised the ice cream and chocolate hadn't melted.

After throwing the tub and bars into the freezer, I continued back to the couch, wrapping back up in my blanket. Warren sat next to me. He'd already finished off his bowl. Even under the blanket, I was freezing. I had wanted to be cold; it helped with the pain somehow. But I could barely feel my fingers.

I put the bowl on the floor, too lazy to take it to the trash and Warren took my hand. It took a lot for me to look at him in the eye. He gently pulled me closer and I let him. He put both my hands between his. He slowly brought them up to his mouth and blew on them. His warm breath made the cold run away, freeing my fingers from its frosty grasp.

I just watched him while he did this. He blew once more and they were back to normal temperature. He looked up at me. I wanted to know what he saw. How he saw me. If I was to look in the mirror, I'd see ratty hair, tear tracks, and red, puffy eyes.

But by the way Warren was looking at me; I could tell he saw differently. I was lost in the coffee, almost gray, color of his eyes. I could see things he was hiding, things he hadn't even told Layla and Co.

Warren leaned closer to me, closing the gap between us. My eyes slipped close as his lips touched mine, taking in all the warmth that was Warren Peace. On instinct, I wrapped my arms around his neck, which made him wrap his arms around my waist, basically pulling me onto his lap.

He pulled away from the kiss and I realized I hadn't been breathing. He smiled as I took a deep breath. I leaned forward again, craving the warmth his lips gave me. But he stopped me. He looked at me and I was confused. Did he not want to be kissing me?

As if reading my mind, "I don't want to hurt you." His eyes were deep and his words tender. He was sincere.

Part of me wanted to be mad at him. But the other part, the bigger part, silently thanked him. I gave him a little smile and snuggled up next to him. His warmth fended off the cold until I drifted off to sleep.

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[Author's Note: I hope that was enjoyable and not too painful to read through. Reviews fuel more chapters, so feel free to let me know what you think; good, bad, or indifferent. Thanks so much!]


	6. You Felt My Scars with Understanding

[Author's Note: I am so so sooo sorry for the long delay between chapters. I've had a busy last few weeks. But I'm going to be trying to post at least once a week now. Again, I really apologize. Here's chapter six.]

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**Chapter Six**

I jolted awake, sitting bolt upright in bed. Bed? Thought I fell asleep on the couch? No way. No, Warren wasn't here. Great, now I'm delusional.

But there was Warren, standing in my doorway looking scared. "What's wrong?" He asked. "You screamed."

I didn't realize it, but my throat hurt. I cleared my throat, looking up at him. "Nothing. I'm fine." I said, climbing out of bed. For some reason, I felt the need to make sure the Glock was in its place. I looked at the dresser as I came to stand in front of him. He looked worried, but I wasn't going to tell him I was plagued by night terrors.

"You can't lie to me. What happened?" He asked. I couldn't look him in the eye. I had to make sure the gun was still in its place. "What's in the dresser?" His voice broke through my thoughts.

"Nothing." Was my automatic response. However, of course, that gave away my concern for the object. Warren moved to make for the dresser, but I stood in front of him. I sighed, knowing I had ratted myself out. I took a step back, facing the hollow chunk of wood that held my clothes.

I pulled out the top drawer, which was pretty much empty and I drew up the false board. I pulled the Glock out and made sure the clip was still full. It was and I replaced it in the false compartment, closing the drawer.

Warren looked shocked when I turned to him. "Why do you have a gun?"

"My uncle was worried about me. I've had it since I got emancipated. Although, it would have come in handy before then." I said, stepping around him.

But Warren had other ideas. "What for?"

I didn't look up at him. Why did I have to do this first thing in the morning? "I'm supposed to carry it in my purse. But I don't like having it. That's why it's stashed."

He looked concerned, for me or the gun, I couldn't tell.

"Can I have my coffee now?" I asked, moving around him. On the table sat a plate of doughnuts and a plate of bacon. I looked up at Warren as he came into the kitchen.

"I was gonna make you breakfast in bed, but…" He trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck.

I couldn't help myself. I hugged him and slowly, he hugged me back. "Thank you." I said with a smile as I went to the coffee pot that was full of the dark brown liquid. I poured my cup and sat down at the table across from Warren. He waited for me to dish my plate before he dished his own.

A loud knock sounded at the door, so I stood to answer it. But opening the piece of wood had fear coursing through my blood. My commander from The Agency stood in front of me in street clothes; a pair of nice jeans and a black long sleeve under a blue winter jacket.

He had an air of Military around him. His hair was that of salt and pepper, cut short enough to keep out of his eyes. If you hadn't known him, his face looked fairly gentle. But I had seen that gentle face give execution orders.

I swallowed the lump of fear that formed in my throat. "U-uncle Tommy. I thought you were in China, at the cell phone factory? When did you get back?" It was the only thing I could think of as I raised my eyebrows, telling him to get the hint.

He gave me a little smile, completely understanding. "I had to take care of some business in the area so I thought I'd stop by and see how you're doing. But it looks like you've got company." He said, peeking around me to wave at Warren, still sitting at the table.

"Oh gosh. Uncle Tommy, this is Warren. He's the guy I went to dinner with the other night. Warren, this is my Uncle Tommy. He sent me over the cell phone." I hadn't actually told my commander I had gone to dinner with Warren, so I'd probably get reamed later.

"Nice to meet you. I've heard a lot about you. I hope you're treating my niece right." My Commander said to him, shaking his hand and giving me a little sideways shoulder squeeze to help the performance.

"Trying my best." Warren said, giving a little smile.

"Do you want to join us for breakfast?" I asked him as he let go of my shoulders.

"No, no. You eat. How about lunch though? I saw a nice looking burger joint on the way into town." Uncle Tommy said.

"Yeah definitely. Noon?" I asked, walking him to the door.

"Sounds good. I'll see ya later, kid." He said, giving me a little hug before he left.

I stood there after the door closed. My heart was pounding so hard I thought it was going to leap out of my chest. So when Warren set his hand on my shoulder, I about jumped out of my skin.

"You ok?" There was that concerned look again. So I plastered on a smile to answer his question. "Of course! He just didn't tell me he was back state-side." I turned to head back to the dining room table, but he grabbed my wrist. He looked completely exhausted all the sudden.

"Why do you keep lying to me?" His question caught me off guard a bit. I pushed a stray lock of blue tinted hair out of my eyes. He was kidding right? He can't be serious. But as I watched him, expectantly waiting for an answer, I knew he was serious. He honestly wanted to know why I had been lying to him, and continued to lie to him.

I couldn't answer him. There was no way. If I said anything, I was giving myself up. And ratting myself out would most likely end me. Literally. They'd kill me to keep their dirty little secrets.

But staring into his eyes, I wanted to tell him. I wanted to spill my guts. I wanted to tell him about the shotgun in the closet; about the fact I was actually spying on him; that I was reporting back to a super top secret agency that even I didn't know the name of.

I had no cover story for that. I hadn't planned on someone actually picking up on me. I hadn't expected to get close enough for someone to see me.

My heart felt like it was breaking in half as I stepped to the door. I couldn't believe what I was about to do. I didn't think about it; I was going robot for the next few minutes. If I thought about it, I'd hate myself for the rest of my life.

"Warren, I think you should go now." I said, holding open the door.

He looked incredulously at me. "You can't be serious."

"Warren. I've told you more about me than my old therapist knew about me. I never told him half the things I told you last night. I willingly opened myself up for the first time in probably close to ten years. And you're asking for more. I can't do that, Warren. So it's probably best if you go." I told him, giving a small wave to the door.

"And I didn't show you any of me? I didn't completely open myself up?" He was getting mad at me. He took hold of the door and closed it, telling me he wasn't going to leave without some form of struggle.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "I'm pretty sure hiding a secret from one person about an ability you can talk about with all of your friends is on the opposite end of the spectrum from being raped and beaten and not being able to tell anyone."

His muscled shoulders were starting to smoke and I wondered briefly if he'd set off the smoke alarms. Oh right, the building didn't have any. "I never said it was the same."

"But you were comparing the two. Side by side; the same way you'd compare TVs before you picked which one to buy. Not secret to secret." I said, glaring at him as I once again opened the door.

About the time I had opened it, he'd closed it again. And he was seriously beginning to piss me off, fire power or not. "Do I look like I want to leave?"

"Did it look like I asked you?" Anddd here I go. "Ya know what? I'm sick of this. You can't just push me around like this. You're not my master. I'm not your slave. 'You don't want to hurt me?'" I asked, quoting his very words from the night before. I saw the smoke simmer down and almost disappear.

Almost. But he'd riled me up; he was getting it now. "No. You're full of bullshit. Just like everyone else on this god forsaken planet. You're full of shit and all I hear is lies. You don't want to hurt me. You're trying to treat me well. It's all completely worthless if you can't prove it to me. Prove to me that you want to be right here involved in my life. Because right now, you're the one lying to me."

And as I finished my little (maybe not so little) rant, I saw the hurt in his eyes. It was a look I never wanted to see again. But it was necessary. I'd been trained for this. When they get too close, push them away.

I mean, I'd learned that skill long before the Agency picked me up off the street, but they just helped me hone it. Warren stared at me. I knew I hurt him. I also knew he'd most likely never talk to me again. The Agency part of me was relieved I didn't have to worry about it anymore.

But the other part of me, the part that had nothing to do with Jade Young, or the Agency, or lying to Warren; that part wanted to cry and beg forgiveness. That I didn't mean a word I'd just said. It wasn't me. I was possessed or temporarily psychotic. But I couldn't.

All I could do was watch him move slowly, as if in slow motion, to the table to retrieve his leather jacket. He looked at me and there were five million emotions and thoughts going through his head.

I had to look away to keep from tearing up. I had to be one of the most evil people on the planet Earth. How could I possibly be doing this right now? I didn't even know.

He stood there for what felt like a hundred years. And then, a whisper so faint, I almost missed it. "I never lied to you." And he opened the door, leaving silently. No slamming doors, no screaming in my face. Just a whispered truth that cut me deeper than I'd ever done to myself.

I made my way to the bathroom. I looked at myself in the mirror and wondered what I had just done. I wasn't even sure. I wasn't recognizing the person in the mirror. My mind was still in robot mode. I couldn't process anything. But if I switched the robot mode off, I'd sit in the bathtub crying for the next five or six hours, pooled in my own blood.

I walked back out to the kitchen. If I stayed in the bathroom too long, robot mode would switch off. I looked at the clock, showing me I had an hour to get my shit together before I spilled my guts.

* * *

My skateboard carried me down the sidewalk. My Commander didn't want to risk coming back to the building, so he sent the address via text. Which, I'll be honest, took me a good few minutes to figure out. But once I could retrieve the information, I set off.

The pavement hummed under the wheels of my board. It took me about ten minutes to get to the restaurant that my Commander had deemed our meet up location. I had to brush up on my top secret lingo, as to not bluntly say in the middle of a crowded room, "Peace is most definitely a super."

Yeah, no. No way would that blow over well. The result would probably be similar to someone who had had sex in a church. Only, not from the being above me. I opened the door to the food joint, setting my board near the rack of coats.

I knew without even looking that we had the booth closest to the door. Easy get away in case of emergencies; which did actually happen sometimes. I sat in the seat across from him. He was most definitely not happy with me. I couldn't really blame him, but whatever. It'll come back to hit me in the face pretty soon. Nothing I hadn't handled before.

"Jade." He nodded to me curtly, reading an article in the newspaper.

"Abraham." I said, in the same tone. When the waitress came by, I asked for a glass of sweet tea and she scurried off to the kitchen.

"You want to explain yourself?" He asked and it reminded me a lot of the tone my dad gave me when he came into the basement yelling, about me yelling.

But he wasn't asking me a question. I had no highway option here. "There was an awesome sunset last night. Did you get a chance to see the colors?" I asked. Translation: Warren's a strong super.

"No, I didn't. I got caught up in the Yankees game on television." He said back, putting down the printed paper. Translation: Good recon. "Did you ever give me your Christmas list?" Translation: I want a list of supers.

I pulled a small notepad out of my back pocket and stole a pen off the closest counter. I quickly scribbled down the names and powers I knew. "I just remembered I left light on at the house. I don't remember what room though." Translation: Zach was a super, no idea what his power was.

"Oh, and Aunt Jenny wanted me to tell you my favorite color is purple. I guess she thought you forgot." I added. Translation: Magenta was a super, no idea what her power was.

"You can tell Aunt Jenny that I knew purple was your favorite color." He said. Translation: Good work. You're doing better than I thought. He nodded to the waitress and we ordered our food.

I smiled at the waitress as she left. Abraham just looked at me. "Your mom and I were having an argument the other day; do you rather being hot or cold?" Loose Translation: Are you crushing on the mission?

I knew that he hadn't of course actually talked to my mother, but even the mention of my mother stung desperately. "Cold. I like the snow." Translation: No way.

He nodded with a smile, obviously not believing me.

"So Warren and I broke up this morning." I told him in English speak so we could actually kind of talk. I hated trying to remember all this damn code speak.

"Oh? I hope he wasn't hurting you." Now, that was a sincere sentence.

"No, no. He just kept asking more and more of me. I finally told him, 'I can't do this anymore.' He got mad at me. There was practically smoke coming out of his ears." And I raised my brows.

His eyebrows shot up on his forehead. "Smoking at the ears you say?" He asked and I nodded. I was really hoping he would get the picture. I took the napkin closest to me and begin doodling. Maybe he thought I was distracting myself, but I had my reasons. I slid him the napkin and smiled at the waitress as she brought out my bacon cheeseburger.

"Those are really cool flames. Did you draw them?" The waitress asked. I smiled. "Yeah." She flashed a dazzling smile back at me. "That's really cool." She reiterated. I nodded my thanks and she left to go serve some other mug.

"Did you need to build a fire in your place last night? It was pretty cold after I got into town." He said, sliding the napkin into the inside pocket of his coat. Translation: Did Warren have a fire kind of power?

"Yeah, I did. It was freezing." I told him, before taking the first bite of the best hamburger I'd ever had in my whole life. Translation from my code speak: Yes, Warren did have a fire kind of power.

"Alright, well. I need to catch my flight back to Asia." He said, thankfully remembering my totally made-up-in-left-field story.

I nodded. "Thanks for lunch." I said, sincerely as he flicked a fifty out onto the table for the food.

He gave a small smile and I saw a flicker of warmth in his cruel eyes. He wasn't all bad. Just, about 98%. But not all bad.

* * *

[A longer chapter to make up for not updating for so long.]


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